1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, an information processing method and a recording medium containing a program including a facsimile apparatus, a scanner apparatus, a printer, a copier, a combined apparatus having at least two of these functions together, and a personal computer.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a network device, an information processing apparatus including a facsimile apparatus, a printer, a copier, a combined apparatus and a personal computer is frequently utilized.
Some of the above-mentioned information processing apparatuses may have a function of shifting into a power saving mode if the information processing apparatus does not receive a packet to be processed by itself through a network for a certain period of time.
Moreover, there exists an information processing apparatus that has a function of responding only to a limited packet such as a regular query packet from a personal computer (which may be expressed as a “PC” hereinafter) through a network in a power saving mode (which is called an “automatic answering function”).
Supplying electricity to a functional part that performs the automatic answering function is maintained even in the power saving mode where power supply to a main part is stopped.
Conventionally, in order to maintain the power saving mode, there is an information processing apparatus that determines whether processing is necessary for a packet if the information processing apparatus receives the packet during the power saving mode, and generates and sends back a response packet if the processing is not needed, keeping the power saving mode, as disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Application Publication No. 2009-29102 (which is hereinafter called Patent Document 1).
Furthermore, in order to maintain the power saving mode, there is an information processing apparatus that determines whether a packet can be answered automatically, and generates and sends back a response packet, keeping the power saving mode, as disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Application Publication No. 2009-151537 (which is hereinafter called Patent Document 2).
However, in the above-mentioned conventional information processing apparatus, for example, if the information processing apparatus is configured as an image forming apparatus, the image forming apparatus frequently receives the regular query packets from the personal computers in an environment where a print function is shared by multiple people.
In such a case, though some of the query packets can be responded to by the automatic answering function alone, the image forming apparatus cannot often shift from a normal mode into the power saving mode.